July 4th, 2023
Image source: Unsplash
By Aswirbaad Das, Govind Kolady
Over millions of years, our planet has witnessed terrifying creatures dominating the seas, land and air–the dinosaurs being the most famous. But did you know about these other creatures that could give the mighty dinosaurs a run for their money? Let us know about them.
A 33-foot-long armoured fish that lived over 350 million years ago in the Devonian period, the Dunkleosteus is believed to be the true first apex predator of its time. It had an incredibly strong jaw made of razor-sharp protrusions of bone that could crush its prey in milliseconds.
Image source: Wikimedia Commons
Also aptly called ‘Terror Birds’, the Phorusrhacos terrorised the land of South America during the Cenozoic period, 62 million to 2 million years ago. Standing over 3 metres tall, these birds with deadly axe-shaped beaks are considered to be the largest flightless birds of all time.
Image source: Adobe Stock
The ferocious Andrewsarchus lived in the inner Mongolia region of China during the middle Eocene epoch, about 56 to 33.9 million years ago. Standing over 6 feet tall, 16 feet long and weighing over a ton, scientists believe it is the largest carnivorous mammal to ever exist.
Image source: Adobe Stock
The largest known invertebrate of all time, the 8.5-foot-long millipede, Arthropleura, would surely send chills down the spine! It existed in the Carboniferous period, around 359 million to 299 million years ago, and crawled scaringly fast, feasting on dead plant matter.
Image source: Wikimedia Commons
Taking ophidiophobia (fear of snakes) to great lengths is the 42-foot-long Titanoboa, which lived during the Paleocene epoch, 66 million to 56 million years ago. It resided in the rainforests of South America, where it would stalk prey, strangle them and deliver a crushing death.
Image source: Wikimedia Commons
A behemoth that could put a great white shark to shame, the 60-foot-long Megalodon infested the waters 23 million to 3.6 million years ago, during the Miocene and Pliocene epochs. It had massive jaws and blade-like teeth for tearing through prey like giant turtles, whales and porpoises.
Image source: Wikimedia Commons
Colloquially called the ‘SuperCroc’, the Sarcosuchus was a giant prehistoric relative of the crocodile that lived about 112 million years ago. At almost 40 feet long and weighing over eight tons, these fearless creatures never hesitated to take on any challenger, including dinosaurs.
Image source: Adobe Stock